My Bodyguard Locations

Locations Manager(s): Jerry Ketcham

My Bodyguard Filming Locations:

Lake View High is on the Corner of Ashland avenue and Irving Park Road on the North side of the city. It is a mile from Wrigley Field. If you look at some of the students in the classroom shots you can see a young frizzy haired Joan Cusack and Jennifer Beals. The official website for Lake View High School can be found here [Thanks to Shel/Mark Veth and Nora Flaherty]

The opening scene in "My Bodyguard" features an aerial shot of Cliffy (Chris Makepeace) riding his bike along the Lakeshore Drive bikepath in downtown Chicago between North Avenue Beach and the Oak Street Beach. This was in my opinion, one of the more breathtaking shots, if not one of the most memorable of the movie.

The scene where Cliffy is riding his bike was filmed in the Gold Coast neighborhood of the Near Northside of Chicago;

Exterior and interior shots of the hotel where Cliffy lives were shot on location at the Ambassador East Hotel, now called the Omni Ambassador East Hotel. This famous hotel has been in operation since 1926. It is located in the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago's Near North Side at 1301 North State Parkway Chicago, Illinois 60610.

The hotel dining and bar scenes were filmed in the Pump Room of the Ambassador East Hotel The Ambassador is now owned by the Omni Hotel chain.

The restaurant where they run out off after eating lunch was Jerry's Food & Liquors on E. Grand Avenue, just east of Michigan Avenue. However, it is NOT Grand Avenue where the outside scene is shot but probably on some set or other location. Chris Lipsey writes to say: I was just watching the movie last night I am pretty sure when they run out of diner they are actually just south of the Irving Park High School on Ashland. John Videll kindly wrote in to confirm: After Cliffy squirts all of the bullies with ketchup and mustard and runs outside, the exterior shot was in fact filmed on Ashland Avenue, just south of Irving Park Rd. You can see Lakeview Highschool in the background. The alley where the bullies are confronted by Ricky is still there and is now Starbucks parking. I lived about two streets away and am very familiar with that intersection.

Matt Ates kindly confirms: The little market/eatery where Clifford squirts mustard and ketchup and runs out of, the entire location was shot on Ashland ave, just south of Irving Park Rd. The eatery is now a business called Moroccan Beauty Rituals and the empty lot and the building next to it was torn down and rebuilt. Part of the empty lot is indeed a Starbucks parking lot right now.

The scene after school where Cliffy tries to be friends with Ricky and Ricky walks away down an alley is located just south of the corner of Ashland and Irving Park Road. The alley runs parallel to Irving Park. [Thanks to John Videll]

The rowing scene with Cliffy, his redhead friend, and a 16-year-old Joan Cusak was filmed in the Lincoln Park Lagoon near the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago;

The "fight and flight" scene where Adam Baldwin gets beaten up by "Mike", gets his bike thrown into the lagoon, then runs away, was also filmed in Lincoln Park near the Lincoln Park zoo;

The "Motorcycle" scene where Cliffy and Adam Baldwin ride their rebuilt motorbike for the first time was filmed in various parts of Chicago's Lincoln Park, the Lakefront, West Loop and downtown Loop area. The name of the huge orange structure that they zigzag in and out on their bike of is none other than the famous "Flamingo" sculpture by Alexander Calder. This particular scene was filmed on location at the John C. Kluczynski Federal Plaza located at 230 S. Dearborn Street in the Loop. The plaza is bounded by the USPS Loop Post office, the Kluczynski Federal Building and the Dirksen Federal Courthouse, and Calder's "Flamingo" is considered the centerpiece. [Thanks to Kim]

The Italian Village restaurant is still there at 71 W. Monroe Street. [Thanks to Bethany Lankin]

I found this on google maps, it's the scene where Linderman tells Peache that he shot his brother - Quincy station [Thanks to Gordon Dunker]

Clifford's driver takes him down S. Halsted from W. 13th Street to W. Liberty Street. Cliff gets out at Liberty and Halsted follows Ricky down an alley. They walk a block on W. Maxwell St., home of the once famous Maxwell Street outdoor market. They go down another alley, then around a corner into the motorcycle shop where Ricky has been working on his bike. [Thanks to Jenny]

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